ICRA Projects

SCARCE (CONSOLIDER INGENIO 2010). This is a Project of the Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (MINECO). Its goal is to predict and describe the relevance of the impacts of global exchange on water availability, its quality, and the services of the ecosystems in the Mediterranean basins of the Iberian Peninsula, as well as the potential implications for the societal needs and the economy. The project is executed in four basins (Llobregat, Ebro and Guadalquivir Júcar) that encompass a variety of problems and different spatial scales, ecologic and socio-economical scenarios.

SCARCE is a basic research project that aims to define the mechanisms that operate in hydrology, water quality, the dynamics of river habitat and the structure of the ecosystems and function of river basins of the Mediterranean under water scarcity. The effects of climate change and the human forcing (both as components of global change) are evaluated on the services that ecosystems provide.
The project has the support of different stakeholders (Water Agencies, Confederaciones Hidrográficas) as well as other agents (such as irrigation communities).

SCARCE brings together a diverse team of Scientists from different areas of knowledge. Incorporates research groups from the Spanish National Research Council (IDAEA, ICMAN), ICRA-UdG, UB, UPV, UPC, UPV, UPM, UV URV and UDL. This consortium covers various aspects that include the hydrology, chemistry of emerging contaminants, habitat and river geomorphology, ecology, modelling, economy, and transfer to society.

Damià Barceló, director of ICRA and deputy director of IDAEA-CSIC is responsible for the coordination of the 11 scientific teams that work in this Project.

SCARCE uses a transversal approach that departs from existing data and fulfils with direct observations and experimentation in the four watersheds.

SCARCE is structured in a series of horizontal and thematics work packages to determine 1) the Risks to the ecosystem services provided by the river systems, 2) a prediction of future threats and 3) Proposals for the Mitigation Risks in the light of the economical and social analysis. The different work packages will focus on the collection of Data (1), the hydrology patterns (2), the transport of sediment and river channel morphology (3), the chemical quality (4), the ecosystem processes (5 ), modelling of water quality and quantity (6), the most probable socio-economic scenarios (7), the evaluation of the ecosystem services (8), and the watersheds management (9).

Participants:
ICRA, IDAEA (CSIC), University of Barcelona (UB), Technical University of Catalonia (UPC), University of Valencia (UV), Instituto de Ciencias Marinas de Andalucia (ICMAN), Euskal Herriko Unibertsitatea (EHU), University Rovira i Virgili (URV), University of Lleida (UDL), Technical University of Valencia (UPV) and Technical University of Madrid (UPM).

ICRA organize at Girona, the 2nd and 3rd December 2010 in collaboration with the Institute of Environmental Assessment and Water Studies (IDAEA) from the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) the 1st SCARCE Annual Conference: Understanding effects of global change of water quantity and quality in river basins, with the support of University of Girona (UdG), the Scientific and Technological Park of UdG, the Catalan Water Agency and the MINECO.

At the conference, which was attended by 106 scientific people all around the world and 10 members of IICRA Scientific Advisory Committee, 28 papers and 29 posters were presented.

The 2nd SCARCE Annual Conference: Integrated modelling and monitoring at different river basin scales took place on 28-29 November 2011 in Madrid, organized by the Institute of Environmental Assessment and Water Studies (IDAEA) from the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) and the Polytechnic University of Madrid .

At the conference, which was attended by 94 scientific people all around the world, 31 papers and 33 posters were presented.

The 3rd SCARCE Annual Conference: Bridging toxicants, stressors and Risk-Based Management under water scarcity took place on 26-27 November 2012 in Valencia, organized by the Institute of Environmental Assessment and Water Studies (IDAEA) from the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), the University of Valencia and the Polytechnic University of Valencia.

At the conference, which was attended by 120 scientific people all around the world, 35 papers and 44 posters were presented.

The 4th SCARCE Annual Conference: Towards a better understanding of the links between stressors, hazard assessment and ecosystem services under water scarcity took place on 25-26 de November 2013 in Cádiz, organized by the Institute of Environmental Assessment and Water Studies (IDAEA) from the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) and the Institute of Marine Sciences of Andalucia from the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC).

At the conference, which was attended by 108 scientific people all around the world, 32 papers and 54 posters were presented.

The FINAL SCARCE Conference: RIVER CONSERVATION UNDER WATER SCARCITY: Integration of water quantity and quality in Iberian Rivers under global change, will take place on 20-21 October 2014 in Tarragona, organized by the Institute of Environmental Assessment and Water Studies (IDAEA) from the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), the University Rovira i Virgili and TECNATOX.

www.idaea.csic.es/scarceconsolider